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Wednesday, November 9, 2011

The Protestant Spotlight...

Every now and then my blog is discovered by some 'supposed' prominent evangelical looking to convert me out of the Catholic Church by lambasting me with the same run of the mill charges that we've heard time and time again. So 'Kevin' as I promised I'll read your material, oh wait a minute, yes, I already did read your material! I get enough of it in the mail,..the 'Chick Tracts?.. Strangely enough, I am not moved to renounce my Faith and adopt, in my opinion a more convenient version of Christianity, or should I say a watered down version. Perhaps, you should reread the Gospels and approach the way you evangelize in a different manner. Our Lord never imposes, only proposes. It is through invitation and free will that we follow Christ, if it isn't, then it isn't really a choice, is it?

By and large, I love my protestant brethren. Dare I say, if not for them, I would not be as zealous as I am. As Catholics, we can learn alot from our protestant friends, especially when it comes to living our Faith. Evangelicals, in particular wear their Christian Faith on their sleeve and are not afraid to proclaim it in the public square. They are on the front lines concerning abortion, so-called gay marriage as well as countless other societal and social issues plaguing our contemporary culture. We agree on some points doctrinally, but yes we differ on others. Does that mean it doesn't matter? Absolutely it matters!!!! For the protestant, they need to rely on natural Grace while we have access to the Sacraments!! The prots have to live their Faith so intensely, not because God is an accountant, but because they remain in imperfect communion with the Church. Some of them do just that. Among these evangelicals, we can find certain allies and people of good will(Billy Graham, Jack Van Impe) who honestly view the Church as just another denomination. In short we can offer Rosaries for these people as sometimes they are but one little nudge away from the Eucharist!

The other side of the protestant world, is the modernist mainstream crowd. These people, seem to tolerate everything and will do anything in the name of compromise sometimes without even realizing it. It should be noted that what seperates this group from the 'spirit of VII' group of heterodox 'catholics,' is that the mainstream protestants even tolerate authentic Catholicism, something the heterodox liberation theology crowd often has an allergic reaction to! They care little about objective truth, and follow a 'live and let live' philosophy,..too bad they contracepted themselves and they're respective communities out of existance! People like Pastor Robert Schuller of the Crystal Cathedral fit this mold, Joel Osteen,..and the majority of anglicans...

The third group is where you fit in Kevin! The anti-Catholic. We can agree on most issues of morality and law but when it comes down to it, you see me as part and parcel of the Whore of Babylon! Well,..not really gonna argue with your type, but I will pray for you. I do accept you as my Christian brother, even if you don't accept me. I do, however have a couple of questions that you might want to ask Peter Ruckman or Bob Jones III or even the grand poobaah himself, Jack T Chick!,..The first being, when was the New Testament canonized and by whom? The second being,. where are all your martyrs and Saints throughout your history? Now, I'm not taking the philosophical route, or even claiming that the Bible is our (Catholic) book,..just posing some questions that'll make you think critically. I respect the fact that you care enough for my salvation to try to persuade me to leave the Church, but I in turn am asking you, what if you come to a knowledge of Truth? You won't be invincibly ignorant any longer,..so would you be ready to swim the Tiber because then your immortal soul could potentially be in danger? Only God knows the human heart,. We both believe Truth exists, but only one of us can be right.

My protestant friends, God Bless you! Some of you live your Faith in such a way that should make Catholics (including myself) feel ashamed. I will leave you with this,..Obviously 'Kevin' is a name I gave to someone who recently contacted me, but his type must be met with intelligent answers. Our late Pope John Paul II wrote an encyclical entitled 'Fides et Ratio' or Faith and Reason. We must have reason, without it, faith becomes superstition. Our Church was born 2000 years ago at Pentecost.,..Only the Church can trace an unbroken line through apostolic succession,....My friends, think, pray on it,..because the way the world is going right now, I think it is time to come home.